Violinmaker and multidisciplinary artist Marcus Bretto has been honing his skills as a craftsman since childhood. He started woodworking and playing classical violin at age 10, building his first violin five years later. He fell in love with the craft and enrolled in the North Bennet Street School violin-making program at age 18, where he studied under maker Roman Barnas until graduating in 2016. That same summer, Marcus was hired for a luthier position at Vermont Violins, having a hand in designing and building over 500 instruments during his 8 years there. He now makes violin family instruments full-time from his workshop based in Burlington, Vermont.

Marcus is also an avid metalworker and musician. He studies early forging techniques, steel smelting, pattern-welding, and bladesmithing, and performs as lead guitarist in the rock group Rose Asteroid.